St.Peter's Operative Lodge No.284

( On the Roll of the Grand Lodge of Scotland )

Masonic Hall Waitside, Castletown 

Lodge Meetings...2nd and 4th Thursday-September to April Tyle. 8.00pm

            Those present were. Bros. A.Dundas,  J.Stannard,  D.Sutherland,  J.Nicholson,  D.MacKay,  D.Calder, W.Begg,    G.Matheson and J.McGregor - all from Castletown. 

 At a general meeting held in the Traill Hall,  Castletown a lengthy discussion ensued regarding a suitable name for the Lodge. There were three proposals:-

At that meeting the following office bearers were elected:-

 It is minuted from this meeting that most of the office bearers should, preferably, reside in Castletown, so that regular attendance to the Lodge meetings could be assured.

At a meeting held on August 2nd it was decided that:-
1. St Andrew's Day should be the date for the annual election of Office-bearers.
2. Blue will be the colour of the Lodge regalia .
3. The initiation fee should be.......£5.5/-
4. The affiliation fee should be.....£1.1/-
5. Test fees be.......................................2/-

Finance
Finding suitable accommodation had been a problem. Acquiring sufficient capital was going to be another one.So, a communication was sent to all Office-bearers requesting their attendance at a meeting of October 2nd to "consider the question of finance". The meeting decided to seek a loan for initial expenses from the North of Scotland Bank Castletown, the eleven office bearers elect guaranteeing a sum not exceeding £150.
At a meeting of October 23rd the RWM. elect informed the Brethren that the Petition with necessary  certificates had been forwarded to Grand Secretary the previous Tuesday. He also paid tribute to Lodges St.Fergus and St.Peter's for their unstinted co-operation and support for the petition.

Charter Granted
On November 1st, Grand Committee Decided to recommend the granting of a Charter. Ultimate sanction had to come from Grand Lodge, which was to meet the following week. The answer was in the affirmative. Lodge John O' Groat, Castletown, No.1333 was born.

Lodge Furnishing
As Grand Secretary had sought suitable dates for the erection and consecration of the Lodge, alterations to the premises at Waitside took on a fresh urgency. Bro. D. Gunn was appointed Inspector of Works with power to carry out any alterations or reconstruction that wuold be in keeping with the wishes of the Brethren. The interior decoration was to be carried out by Bro. C. Banks, joiner, Rattar. Bro. J. Munro, Thurso, was asked to install: a Master's chair, a railing for the dais, pedestals for the Wardens and one for the Volume of the Sacred Law. Lodges St.Fergus and St.Peter's generously gifted items of furniture e.g, floor carpeting.

Ritual
As many of the founding members of Lodge John O' Groat had been initiated in Wick and Thurso, there was a strong body of opinion that the ritual of those Lodges should be used in Castletown. Bro. McGregor, RWM. elect was adamant that all the degree workings in Lodge John O' Groat should be solemn and dignified. ( In many Lodges, particularly in the 3rd Degree, excessive "horse-play" was practised.)  He favoured a distinctive ritual and exhorted his office-bearers to maintain a high standard of working in the degrees. We are pleased to note that the proficiency of those early days is still upheld.
We must remember that of all the office-bearers elect, not one had previously held office. So, they practised diligently and frequently in the upstairs room of Bro. Begg's house, selflessly assisted by many Brethren who traveled from Wick and Thurso to help and encourage.
December 26th, 1924 saw the last meeting of Office Bearers in Bro. Begg's residence. All the minutes of this year testify to his hospitality. To him, the Lodge will be forever indebted.

1st Meeting at Waitside
The next meeting would be at Waitside. At this time some wag ( J. Nicholson ? ) had coimed the expression, "Begg conceived, McGregor brought it forth and Abrach named it!" And so, the hopes, dreams and efforts of the past years were finally realised. A proud RWM, elect opened the evening's proceedings on January 2nd, 1925, and announced that the erection and consecration of the Lodge would be held on January 13th.
( Grand Lodge later postponed the event until January 27th ).
We noted earlier in this chapter that the premises now occupied by the Lodge were formerly a Seceders Church, which, having fallen into disuse as a place of worship, became a haven for hens. An old Seceder who moved south upon making enquiry from a Castletown resident regarding who now kept hens at Waitside, received the tart reply: "Hens! It's a damn sight worse now, - the Masons have moved in!"

Erection and Consecration, January 27th, 1925
The Grand Director of Ceremonies then proclaimed the Lodge... "By virtue of the powers and authority of Grand Lodge, these Brethren are now constituted a regular Lodge of Ancient True and Accepted Masons, by the title and designation of the Lodge John O' Groat, Castletown No.1333." Then, he presented the Master designate Bro. John Grant McGregor to the RW. the Acting Grand Master Bro. James Watson, to be installed into office. This ceremony took place in the absence of the Brethren. On the Brethren's return, the RWM. received their homage in the first, second and third degrees. The remaining office bearers were installed by Bro. J. Waterson, Grand Director of Ceremonies.
Later in the evening the assembly was entertained to dinner and refreshments in the Traill Hall, Castletown. It was the greatest dinner ever in the village! The hall was bursting!  

First Degree
On March 12th, 1925, office bearers of the Lodge had their baptism by passing on the mysteries and privileges of the first degree to Messrs: Sidney Gibbons, William Florence, John Dunnet and William Cheyne.

Second Degree
This was first carried out, on March 26th, 1925 when the aforementioned Brethren were passed to the Fellow Craft Degree.

Third Degree
The first carried out was on May 7th, Bros. Gibbons and Dunnet were raised to the Sublime Degree of a Master Mason.

Mark Degree
Bro. W. Brims PM. of St.Peter's performed the first Mark Degree on January 28th, 1926.

Divine Service
Lodge John O' Groat has been justly proud of it's annual and well attended visitations to Churches within the province; visitations date back to June 20, 1926 when Brethren marched in procession to Olrig Parish Church.

More History